A blog dealing with either the joy of cinema or the agony of cinema--nothing in between.

Wednesday, March 4, 2015

Duck Soup

Rufus T. Firefly (Groucho Marx) is named supreme leader over the fictional land of Freedonia at the behest of heiress Mrs. Teasdale (Margaret Dumont) over whose honor he declares war on adjoining Sylvania. In the meantime, the head of this rival nation has hired two bumbling spies (Chico and Harpo Marx) to keep tabs on their enemy's new leader. The Marx Brothers' classic melange is not so much a movie as a nonstop assault of gags, one-liners, one-upsmanship, and putdowns. In short, hilarious irreverence. Directed by Leo McCrarey, best known for more say respectable fare (Going My Way, An Affair to Remember), it features memorable sequence after memorable sequence (the mirror gag seemingly stands out for most) with each brother in top form.